CUTTING-EDGE Valencian architect Santiago Calatrava has been commissioned to design the new Dubai Creek skyscraper.

The futuristic building is described as a cross between the Eiffel Tower in Paris and the Burj al-Khalifa hotel in Dubai, the tallest building in the world.

It will be built by the same joint venture firm which constructed the Burj al-Khalifa, Dubai Holding and Emaar Properties.

United Arab Emirates' head of State and governor of the city of Dubai, Sheikh Mohammad bin Rashid al-Maktoum, picked out the design presented by the man who created Valencia's iconic and avant garde City of Arts and Sciences, a splendid complex every bit as intricate and eye-catching as the Sydney Opera House.

Al-Maktoum says the new skyscraper was designed with the aim of being one of the city's most popular future attractions for tourists and visitors, and Calatrava's idea was 'a perfect combination of Islamic architecture with modern design'.

“It will be completely unique, iconic, and reflect the cultural diversity of the United Arab Emirates,” added chairman of Emaar Properties, Mohammad Ali al-Alabbar.

Calatrava, whose lesser-known works include the Sydney Harbour-style bridge over the river between Gandia (Valencia province) and its neighbouring village of Beniopa at one extreme, futuristic structures from Argentina to the Middle East, and a footbridge leading to the station in Venice across the Grand Canal, said he felt 'very grateful and honoured' to have been chosen out of thousands of applicants to create the skyscraper.

“Dubai is developing some of the most innovative and revolutionary architecture in the world,” Calatrava said.

“My entry was aimed at blending traditional local architecture with that of the 21st century.”